Travis Pastrana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Travis Pastrana |
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Pastrana at Daytona International Speedway in 2023
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| Born | Travis Alan Pastrana October 8, 1983 Annapolis, Maryland, U.S. |
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| Related to | Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins (wife) Alan Pastrana (uncle) |
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| Nitro Rallycross career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Debut season | 2021 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current team | Subaru Motorsports USA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Car no. | 199 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Starts | 5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championships | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best finish | 1st in 2021 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Previous series | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 2012, 2015, 2017, 2020 2012 2011–2012 2011 2005–2010 |
NASCAR Nationwide Series NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Rolex Sports Car Series K&N Pro Series East K&N Pro Series West Rally America |
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| Championship titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 2017 2006–2009 2001 2000 |
Nitro Rallycross American Rally Association Rally America AMA Supercross 125cc AMA Motocross 125cc |
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| NASCAR Cup Series career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 race run over 1 year | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Car no., team | No. 67 (23XI Racing) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 position | 37th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best finish | 37th (2023) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First race | 2023 Daytona 500 (Daytona) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| NASCAR Xfinity Series career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 42 races run over 2 years | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 position | 14th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best finish | 14th (2013) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First race | 2012 Virginia 529 College Savings 250 (Richmond) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last race | 2013 Ford EcoBoost 300 (Homestead) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 races run over 5 years | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Truck no., team | No. 41 (Niece Motorsports) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 position | 51st | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best finish | 51st (2020) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First race | 2012 Smith's 350 (Las Vegas) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last race | 2023 NextEra Energy 250 (Daytona) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Statistics current as of February 19, 2023. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Travis Alan Pastrana (born October 8, 1983) is an amazing American athlete. He is famous for being super successful in many different sports. These include freestyle motocross, rally racing, NASCAR, and even performing daring stunts.
Travis became well-known in the early 2000s. He won many gold medals at the X Games. In 2006, he was the first person to land a double backflip in a competition. Before his freestyle career, Travis was also a great motorcycle racer. He won titles in the AMA Motocross and Supercross 125cc races in 2000 and 2001.
Beyond motorcycles, Travis has won the Rally America championship four times. He also competed in Global RallyCross. Travis has raced in NASCAR, including the Nationwide Series and the Truck Series. In 2022, he became a world champion in Class 1 World Powerboat Championship with British powerboat racer Steve Curtis.
In 2003, Travis helped start Nitro Circus. This is an entertainment company that creates live shows, TV series, and movies. They feature extreme stunts and action sports. Travis has also done many famous stunts on his own. Some of these were recreations of stunts by the legendary daredevil Evel Knievel.
Contents
Travis Pastrana's Career Highlights
Motorcycle Racing Adventures
Travis Pastrana started his career in the AMA Motocross Championship in late 1999. He won the 125cc national title in 2000. This made him the youngest person to win at just 16 years old. In 2001, he won the 125cc East Coast title in the AMA Supercross Championship.
Travis raced in the 250cc class from 2001 to 2005. His best year was 2002, when he finished 16th. In 2023, Travis was honored by being added to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.
Representing Puerto Rico
Travis's father, Robert Pastrana, was born in Puerto Rico. This meant Travis could race for Puerto Rico in international events. He got a special license from the Puerto Rico Motorcycle Association.
In 2018, Travis raced for Team Puerto Rico again at the Motocross of Nations. He joined teammates Kevin Windham and Ryan Sipes. They wanted to help raise money and awareness after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in 2017. All three racers made it to the main event.
Freestyle Motocross: Daring Jumps
Travis was already doing stunts in motocross races at 13 years old. At 14, he won the World Freestyle Motocross Championship. This started a winning streak that lasted until 2003. After winning gold at the 1999 X Games, Travis also won gold at the first Gravity Games. He went on to win five gold medals at the Gravity Games.
X Games Achievements
Travis Pastrana has had an amazing career at the X Games. He won the first-ever MotoX Freestyle event in 1999. He scored a super high 99.00 points. He won MotoX Freestyle gold again in 2000 and 2001.
In 2003, Travis won his fourth gold medal. He was also the second rider to ever do a 360-degree spin in a competition. In 2006, he made history by landing the first double backflip in competition. This earned him a score of 98.60, the highest ever in the Best Trick event at the X Games. That year, he won three gold medals in MotoX Best Trick, MotoX Freestyle, and Rally Car Racing.
Travis continued to compete and win medals. In 2008, he won gold in Rally. In 2010, he won Moto X Freestyle with another double backflip. He also won Moto X Speed & Style. Travis has won a total of 11 X Games gold medals, 4 silver medals, and 2 bronze medals.
Rally Racing Adventures
In 2003, Travis started his rallying career at the Race of Champions. He began driving for the Subaru rally team in 2004. From 2006, Travis led the new Subaru Rally Team USA.
On August 5, 2006, Travis won the first rally car gold medal at the X Games. He beat rally legend Colin McRae. Later that month, Travis won his first Rally America National series race. He became the youngest American rally champion ever. Travis won the Rally America driver's title four years in a row, from 2006 to 2009. This is a record for the series.
In 2011, Travis started racing in the Global RallyCross Championship. He won a race in New Hampshire in 2012. In 2020, Travis started his own racing series called Nitro Rallycross. He won two races and became the 2021 champion.
Travis has also set records for climbing Mount Washington in a car. In 2017, he set a record of 5 minutes, 44.72 seconds. In 2021, he broke his own record with a time of 5 minutes, 28.67 seconds. He used his powerful 862-horsepower Subaru WRX STI.
NASCAR Racing Experience
Travis Pastrana made his NASCAR debut in 2011. He raced in the Toyota All-Star Showdown. He later teamed up with Michael Waltrip Racing. In 2012, Travis raced in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. His best finish was 13th. He also raced in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
In 2013, Travis raced a full season in the Nationwide Series for Roush Fenway Racing. He earned four top-ten finishes. He also won his first ever pole position at Talladega Superspeedway. Travis finished 14th in the points standings that year.
Travis decided to leave NASCAR at the end of 2013. He said it was hard to get used to pavement racing. He wanted to focus more on rally and off-road truck racing. However, he did return for a few Truck Series races in 2015, 2017, and 2020.
In 2023, Travis made a special appearance in the Daytona 500, a very famous NASCAR race. He drove for 23XI Racing. He successfully qualified for the race. During the Daytona 500, Travis led one lap by accident. He finished 11th after a crash on the final lap. Travis said he achieved all his goals for the race and would not try another NASCAR Cup Series race.
Powerboat Racing Success
Travis started racing offshore powerboats in 2020. He joined the Miss GEICO Racing Team. In 2022, he and Steve Curtis won the Class 1 World Championship title. This was with the Huski Chocolate Racing Team.
In 2023, Travis decided to race less in powerboats. He wanted to spend more time with his family and other racing. However, he still raced in some events, like the Powerboat P1 Sarasota Grand Prix.
Nitro Circus: Extreme Stunts
In 2009, Travis's TV show, Nitro Circus, started on MTV. Travis was an executive producer for the show. It was similar to MTV's Jackass. The show featured Travis and his friends doing many dangerous stunts. Famous people like Johnny Knoxville and Gary Coleman appeared on the show.
Travis also drove a "Pastrana 199" monster truck in Monster Jam events. In 2009, he competed in the freestyle part of the Monster Jam World Finals. The truck later changed its name to "Nitro Circus". In 2010, another driver successfully did a backflip in the Nitro Circus monster truck.
Other Amazing Activities
On September 26, 2007, Travis did a very risky stunt. He jumped out of an airplane over Arecibo, Puerto Rico, without a parachute. He met another jumper in midair and attached to a harness for a safe landing.
On January 1, 2010, Travis set a new world record for a car jump. He jumped his Subaru rally car 269 feet from a pier onto a floating barge. After the jump, he celebrated by doing a gainer flip into the harbor!
Honoring Evel Knievel
Travis has always looked up to the famous daredevil Evel Knievel. In 2018, Travis honored Knievel by breaking some of his records. In Las Vegas, Nevada, Travis successfully completed three record-breaking jumps in one night.
He jumped over 52 cars (143 feet), then over 16 buses (192 feet). Finally, he jumped over the Caesar's Palace Fountain (149 feet). Evel Knievel himself had crashed trying to jump this fountain in 1967. Travis completed all these jumps safely. These amazing feats were shown live on TV.
Injuries: The Price of Extreme Sports
Travis Pastrana has had many injuries throughout his career. He once said, "I don't remember most of the injuries, there have been too many." By 2019, he had broken over 90 bones and had more than 25 concussions.
When Travis was 14, he had a very serious motocross accident. He landed badly after a jump, going from 50 mph to 0 mph in less than a second. This caused his spine to separate from his pelvis. He was in a wheelchair for three months. Doctors told him that very few people survive such an injury. Even while recovering, Travis was determined to keep jumping motorcycles.
In 2011, he broke his foot and ankle at the X Games. This happened when his motorcycle didn't land correctly. Despite this, he still tried to compete in the Rally Cross final. In 2022, Travis was seriously hurt while BASE jumping. He broke his pelvis again. This injury stopped him from racing for the United States in the 2022 Race of Champions.
Personal Life
Travis Pastrana's family has roots in Colombia through his father's side. His uncle, Alan Pastrana, played football as a quarterback for the University of Maryland. Travis also went to the University of Maryland.
Travis is married to Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins, who is a professional skateboarder. They got married on October 29, 2011. They have two daughters. Their first daughter was born on September 2, 2013, and their second daughter was born on February 9, 2015.
Images for kids
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Pastrana driving a classic Ford Escort Mk1 at the 2008 Colin McRae Forest Stages.
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Pastrana, Colin McRae and Ken Block at X Games XIII.
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Pastrana during driver intros at Road America in 2013
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Pastrana's No. 60 at Road America in 2013
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Pastrana at the 2014 Mount Washington Hillclimb
See also
In Spanish: Travis Pastrana para niños
